pinterest pin Ultimate Guide to Desert Safari Dubai

Prologue

In the Summer of 2024, we traveled to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for a family vacation. During our stay in Dubai, we did the famous Dubai Desert Safari. So based on our experience, today I’m going to share with you everything you need to know before you go for Desert Safari Dubai. Let the journey begin!

And to read a day-by-day account of our 6-day Dubai and Abu Dhabi vacation with a detailed itinerary, please visit our article Ultimate 6 Day Dubai and Abu Dhabi Itinerary | Perfect 6 Days in Dubai and Abu Dhabi Travel Planner | 17 Best Things to Do and Places to Visit in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

What is Desert Safari Dubai?

While the glitzy cityscapes are fascinating, the true essence of Dubai lies deep among the desert's red sand dunes, and the best way to experience it is the desert safari. You will feel the thrill of the desert and discover the traditions and culture of the ancient Bedouins who once lived in the dunes. So, in a nutshell, Desert Safari Dubai combines adventure, nature, and culture which is why it is one of the highlights of Dubai tourism. Today, I’m going to share our experience of Desert Safari Dubai with you. Let the journey begin!

What are the Different Desert Safari Tour Packages in Dubai?

Morning Desert Safari: To me, the best time to do a desert safari is in the evening when the heat is less and you can trek the dunes on camelback while the sun sets over the sandy horizon. But if you don't have time for an evening safari because of your tight travel schedules, as an alternative, you can try experiencing the desert in its tranquility during the morning. You can witness a captivating sunrise followed by breakfast, sandboarding, and sunrise viewing. Exclusive morning activities like hot air balloon rides and wildlife discovery are also included in some morning safari tours.
Evening Desert Safari: As I said, evening desert safari is a must-do if you have time in your Dubai itinerary. Beginning in the afternoon, evening safaris offer a variety of exhilarating activities, such as dune bashing, camel rides, falcon shows, henna painting, and traditional dance performances such as tanoura, fire, and belly dancing, which you can enjoy while indulging in a delectable barbecue meal or shisha smoking. We did the evening safari.
Overnight Desert Safari: If you are a nocturnal creature, the night desert safari adventures will be ideal for you. Your overnight desert safari journey will start with an exhilarating dune-bashing adventure into the desert camp, where you enjoy traditional performances while savoring a delicious supper. As the night deepens you sleep off in the desert camp spotting stars with the help of astrological guides and conclude the tour by waking up to a stunning sunrise over the dunes the next morning.

Our Desert Safari Dubai Experience

Advance Booking the Tour

Around 6 months before we traveled to Dubai, we had booked our Desert Safari tour (more information on the tour operator with whom we booked our trip is coming in the ‘Tips and Tricks’ section below). It costed us around €75.08 per person and included dune bashing, camel riding, henna painting, dance performances, shisha smoking, and barbeque dinner. If you book during winter, the package may also include a falcon show (in summer it is too hot for the falcons to perform outdoors). Also, upon reaching the desert on the day of your safari, you can add the (optional) quad bike ride (self-driven 4-wheeled motorbike ride on the dunes) to your package if you want (and pay in cash on the spot).

Hotel Pickup

As I had mentioned in the beginning, we were in Dubai during the summer. So, the temperature was around 44 degrees Celsius (feels like temperature was 52 degrees Celsius), with 90% humidity. So on the day of our desert safari, we stayed dipped in the rooftop swimming pool of our hotel in Dubai Marina for the entire morning. After the swimming, we took a shower in our room and ordered lunch from room service. Post that, we waited for our tour guide Iqbal (Pakistani by origin but born and brought up in UAE) to pick us up from our hotel in his air-conditioned 4x4 Toyota Land Cruiser for our Dubai Desert Safari.

Buying Souvenirs

After Iqbal arrived, he drove us for 1.5 hours from Dubai to a remote desert area. On the way, he stopped by Al Wista Supermarket on the Dubai-Hatta Rd towards Al Madam (which’s practically in the middle of nowhere) to help us buy some souvenirs. We bought a couple of Kandoras/Dishdashas/Thobes (the traditional headwear/turban that was initially worn by the Bedouin nomads and now an integral part of the ethnic attire of Gulf countries) for me and Ricky. If you do not want to buy souvenirs, you can ask your driver to skip this step.

Red Dune Bashing

Once we reached the Lahbab desert location (somewhere near Al Aweer), Iqbal said that it was now time for some spine-chilling red dune bashing. We held on tight as Mr. Iqbal zoomed to the top of wavy dunes, slid down the other side (which felt like gliding through thick butter) in a way we thought he lost control of the vehicle, and just at the end spun the steering wheel to get it back on track, making the journey an adrenaline-pumping roller coaster.

dubai desert safari red dune bashing toyota land cruiser united arab emirates

Camel Riding

After the dune bashing, Iqbal dropped us at our desert camp where our Camel Safari guide Basheer (also Pakistani but spoke Hindi/Urdu with an Afghani Pathaan accent like “Tu mereko tera camera de na, main tera photo kheechega!” meaning “You give me your camera, I will take your photos!”) was waiting for us with his 3 camels namely Jojo, Lolo, and Baby. All of them wore masks not for protection against COVID-19 but for protection against them not chewing on Jayeeta’s long hair! Despite that Jojo kept trying to do that and also tried kissing the other camels and Basheer kept reminding him very politely “Jojo no touching!”

Anyway, I’ve been on camels many times and hence knew the animal, especially how they stand up from the ground or sit down on the ground front feet first and hind legs later while disembarking or embarking, respectively, so I had no problems. But Ricky was scared to fall off while the camel was getting up from the ground or sitting down on the ground and once the camel stood up he shouted “I want to get down, this animal is so high!” Also, Ricky’s camel ‘Baby’ was a bit nervous himself as he was probably too young and hence wanted to brush his own body with that of Jojo or Lolo (may be one of them could be his parents and hence he wanted to be close to him/her for a sense of security) which made Ricky more tense. Anyway, as we started trekking the dunes on the camel’s back, Ricky got used to the rhythmic motion of the camel’s treading and started enjoying it.

After the camel ride, we got off the camels and posed with them for a photo shoot session for around half an hour in the middle of the desert and the camels complied very gracefully. Ricky loved his camel ‘Baby’ so much that he would not stop patting him.

Sunset Bedouin Seating and Refreshments

After the camel ride, Basheer returned to the camp with the camels, and we drove back to our camp with Iqbal in his Land Cruiser who was following us all this while. Upon reaching the camp, we were made to sit in a bedouin seating with a table and sand bean bags to enjoy the sunset. Iqbal gave us dates, some sort of Arabic Malpua (sugar syrup-coated pancakes), and beverages like fresh Arabic coffee, tea, and cold drinks as refreshments while we enjoyed the sunset.

dubai desert safari featuring bedouin seating during sunset

Henna Painting, Tanoura, Fire, and Belly Dance Show

Post the sunset, we went to the dining space where a big open stage was set up for a grand evening show that comprised a Tanoura dance performance (Egyptian Sufi/Dervish spiritual folk dance where the dancers spin wearing 3 to 5 layers of 18-kilogram skirts symbolizing the revolution of earth around the sun and movement of pilgrims around the ‘Kaaba,’ the holy Shrine in Mecca), a couple of thrilling fire shows, and finally ending up with belly dancing. There was also a henna stall offering henna painting services for a cultural experience. My wife did not opt for it.

dubai desert safari featuring fire show tanoura dance performance and belly dance in united arab emirates or uae at night

Barbeque Dinner and Shisha Smoking

In parallel to the performances, we were served falafel, shawarma roll, and tea/coffee on our table as starters (we didn’t have to stand in the buffet queue as others since all of this was included in our package). After that for the main course dinner, we were served kebab platter, biriyani rice, pasta, beetroot salad, hummus, tahini, and soft drinks. The food was plentiful and we even could not finish all of what was served (also due to the heat our appetite was limited) which we felt sorry for as we do not like wasting food. Upon apologizing to them, they said there was nothing to worry about as they gave the leftovers to the camels. There was also an arrangement for shisha smoking (in place of shisha) but we did not opt for it. After the dinner, the day was finally wrapped up by 21:00 GST.

Tips and Tricks for Desert Safari Dubai

Approximate Location: Lahbab desert (somewhere near Al Aweer)

Map provided by Wanderlog, for making itineraries on iOS and Android

Getting to the Location: A pick-up and drop-off from your selected hotel by air-conditioned 4x4 Toyota Land Cruiser will already be included in your desert safari package.

Best Time to Visit: November to March is the most pleasant time to do the desert safari as these are the cooler months in Dubai, with temperatures ranging between 17°C and 30°C (86°F). However, like us, if you can travel only during school holidays like the ones during Easter, May, or July, you can choose to travel to Dubai between April and October but remember, summers can be boiling in Dubai, with temperatures ranging between 40°C and 50°C.

Best Tour Operator to Do the Desert Safari With: Selecting a trustworthy company is crucial while planning your desert safari. We had booked our Desert Safari tour with Oscar Knight Tours, one of the most highly-rated companies for Desert Safari Dubai. There are cheaper options available but I highly recommend them for the quality of their tour and the quality/quantity of the food. You can also check out two other popular companies for desert safaris namely Arabian Adventures, which offers a large selection of safari options, and Platinum Heritage, which provides luxury tours in vintage cars. Whatever tour operator you choose, I urge you to book the tour as early as you can since they have limited capacities and they sell out pretty early being one of the major tourist attractions in Dubai.

Best Desert Safari Tour Package to Choose: As I said before, the best time to do a desert safari is in the evening when you can trek the dunes on camelback in cooler weather watching the sun set over the sandy horizon. So your default choice should be the Evening Desert Safari package. But if your schedule allows visiting the desert only during the day, go for the Morning Desert Safari package. Alternatively, if you love star gazing and tranquility, the Overnight Desert Safari package will suit you best.

Things to Avoid: Remember, dune bashing is a roller coaster ride with abrupt jerks and sharp turns. So, while choosing your package, avoid dune bashing and high-speed thrills if you have heart issues, back problems, vertigo, or motion sickness as these activities may worsen your condition. Also, I would not recommend pregnant women and small children (under four years) to go on the desert safari tour because it is distant from the city and makes it difficult to seek assistance in case of an emergency.

Dress to Wear: Dress in breathable, light attire. To keep sand out of your shoes and have a firm grip when walking in the sand, wear closed shoes or sandals with ankle straps. Carry a hat (we wore the kandoras), sunglasses, and sunscreen for added protection. If you are traveling during winter, keep a jacket handy since the temperature in the desert can drop very quickly after sunset. Also, don’t wear valuable jewelry as you can lose them in the sand!

Food to Eat Before the Desert Safari: Dune bashing and quad biking can be very bumpy. So, ensure that your food has been fully digested before you start the desert safari. Eat a modest lunch or wait at least three hours before engaging in dune bashing or quad-biking. Also, keep yourself hydrated to beat the heat but don’t overdrink water before these adventurous activities.

Medication to Bring: I recommend you to keep motion sickness medication handy just in case you need it.

Things to Communicate before the day of the Desert Safari: If you want to be picked up/dropped off exclusively (without other passengers in the car), you can call up your tour operator and request which we did. They normally will accept your request unless there’s too much rush and they have fewer vehicles. We also requested three separate camels for the three of us, which they also complied with. I heard that if you have kids with you, they tend to put them with an adult on the same camel which we did not want.

Things to Communicate on the day of the Desert Safari: Upon reaching the desert on the day of your safari, if you want you have to tell them to add the (optional) quad bike ride to your package (and pay in cash on the spot). Also, do not forget to remind them if you have decided to skip items from your package like the dune bashing owing to heart problems for instance. If you do not do that, you find yourself zooming to the top of gigantic red dunes with the heart in your mouth before you know it!

Tipping: Tipping is a customary way to express gratitude for exceptional service. Keep some cash on hand to tip drivers, guides, and other services.

Epilogue

So that was everything you need to know before going on Desert Safari Dubai. Please let us know in the comments below if you enjoyed reading this article.

And to read a day-by-day account of our 6-day Dubai and Abu Dhabi vacation with a detailed itinerary, please visit our article Ultimate 6 Day Dubai and Abu Dhabi Itinerary | Perfect 6 Days in Dubai and Abu Dhabi Travel Planner | 17 Best Things to Do and Places to Visit in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.